As Scotts Valley Middle School students sharpen their No. 2 pencils for statewide testing, their teachers are showing solidarity with smelly T-shirts.
All school staff, including teachers, secretaries and custodians, will don the same shirts every day of the two-week testing — without washing them once.
“The students are taking the S.T.A.R. test, which is a lot to ask of them, and we were trying to think of a way to show our support and suffer with them,” said Scotts Valley Middle School Assistant Principal Tracey Bosso.
The Standardized Testing and Reporting tests are multiple-choice exams that gauge how students’ learning measures up to state standards.
“This is the first time we’ve done something like this,” Bosso said. “The students really enjoy the not washing part. They think it’s funny.
“When you’re that age, to wear the same thing every day and not wash it is disgusting.”
Some of the more than 50 men and women wearing the shirts have personalized them with tie-dye and other adornments, Bosso said.
The shirts are black-and-white ringer-style tees with the initials “STAR” written inside a star.
S.T.A.R. test results tell the state whether schools are up-to-par on teaching students and let educators know if their methods are working.
The tests cover English, science, social science and math.
Schools that have low performance results for multiple years can face sanctions from the state. Because of that, school officials have been under pressure to encourage students to take the tests — and take them seriously. Parents can request that their children be excused from testing.
Bosso said that has not been a problem at Scotts Valley Middle School, which has been the top-performing middle school in the county for 10 years.
The 600 students at the middle school started the exams Monday April 26, and will be in testing until May 7.
“Some of the students are testing for hours,” Bosso said. “We’re trying to keep up the morale — filling in bubbles can get tedious.”
